01
About

About
Host Digital

Hey, I'm Alan. On this page you'll find a little more about me.

02
A Personal Timeline

How I Got Here

2006

Start working in a London marketing agency. Generalist 360° digital marketer.

2009

Join another London marketing agency. Specialize in performance marketing.

2013

Specialize in website conversion rate optimisation.

2014

Marriage, 3-month honeymoon, general hiatus.

2015

Start Host Digital.

2018

Have a baby girl.

2020

Have a baby boy.

GA4 comes out of beta, moving event-driven web analytics into the mainstream.

2021

iOS 14.5 privacy changes force D2C brands to rethink attribution and double down on owned channels.

Shopify Online Store 2.0 launches — the biggest update in Shopify's history, introducing customizable sections on every page and App Blocks.

Google Ads Performance Max (PMax) replaces Smart Shopping, letting AI decide ad placement based on signals instead of manual targeting.

2022

Meta launches Advantage+ Shopping campaigns — automating up to 150 creative combinations to lower CPA's.

2023

ChatGPT goes mainstream, upending traditional machine learning workflows and AI-driven data tools.

Klaviyo IPO marks maturation of email marketing automation as essential D2C infrastructure.

2024

Shopify Sidekick (AI commerce assistant) reaches full release, executing merchant commands like discount setup or theme changes instantly.

2025

Explosion of autonomous AI agents to orchestrate and optimize marketing workflows. Shopify begins rolling out Agentic Storefronts, allowing products to be discovered and purchased directly inside AI agents like ChatGPT and Google Gemini.

Meta launches Andromeda, prioritizing creative diversification over manual audience targeting—"Creative is the New Targeting."

03
The Wild West

When I Started in Digital Marketing

  • Google acquired Urchin and relaunched it as Google Analytics
  • Mobile internet was entirely text-based – a baby internet
  • Average CPC on Adwords: $0.32
  • SEO was entirely gameable – including buying links from link directories

That was the wild west. I spent half my time just keeping up with the pace of change.

AA Recovery

After Agency

Having working in digital marketing agencies, I found that, while agencies are great at specific tasks, they're rarely integrated with the actual business goals.

So now I'm in AA recovery ('after agency'!). As your true partner, Host Digital grows customer acquisition and retention with Exec-level marketing leadership.

Activate Your CMO

Ready to build marketing systems that compound?

Read the Manifesto